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| | Twenty-four years ago today, I awoke in Toronto to the news of a plane flying into the World Trade Center, and the slow, terrible realization of what was happening, and how quickly the world would change. This post is not about 9/11, though like others, I will be remembering the victims, their families, the survivors, and those still being affected by the events of that day in more ways than I can name here. I was at the Toronto Film Fest on 9/11, and I’ve been back every year, and each time, someone there, or a group of us, told their story of this day. This was the first year that I didn’t hear it come up. It was also a festival of some muted exuberance, with everyone seeming in good spirits about the film world, both in the art and the business. But I can’t shake the feeling that these two things are somehow related. That we’re somehow keeping our eyes so laser-focused on the good side of things, that we have a collective amnesia about the bad, and it might be blinding us to other things on the horizon. Remember, what everyone says about that 9/11 – it was a beautiful day, with a balmy blue-sky just before the planes hit the towers. Best of worst. But there’s no denying there’s been balmy blue-sky feelings in the industry. There are multiple new film distributors on the scene, acquiring films; with at least ten new players by my rough count. The bigger (non-streamer conglomerate) distributors seem to be getting bigger – Mubi being the new A24, A24 being the new… something, 1-2 Special being the new Sideshow (or maybe the new Mubi), Blackbear becoming the new major studio, and so on and so forth. Films are somehow getting financed, and business is happening, even if no sales agent I spoke with seems to have any mechanism to value North American rights anymore. As several told me at TIFF – rough quote here, “it’s feast or famine, you either sell for seven figures, or get zero offers, so we put a zero in that column and hope for a cherry on top.” But all accounts are that while the TIFF market was slow (only one sale reported as of today), the business is back, many films are being considered, and most sales agents and distributors feel cautiously optimistic, and a few are even bullish. The documentary market is a little rougher. The marketplace in the US continues to collapse. We have major cuts at PBS, and all attention from the major funders is focused on how to save some remnants of Independent Lens and POV, and not so much on the rest of the sector None of the major streamers are buying nearly as many docs, and they seem to be performing worse at the box office than ever before. As a result, no one is sure how these films will get funded anymore. But on the bright side, they’re still showing up, and when you play them at film festivals, you get big, enthusiastic audiences. And doc filmmakers won’t ever give up, anyway, right?! And in another good sign, one major sales agent told me they’re still mainly selling US docs to the international market, which remains much healthier (for the time being) than that of the US. Best of the worst of times. Brands continue to launch film divisions, and from the emails hitting my inbox hourly, every filmmaker is now seeking their funding for their films, where they didn’t know this sector existed five years ago (or did, but turned up their noses at it). We’re busier than ever here at Sub-Genre with our brand business, but in full transparency, our happiest clients are the ones making short films, where they can control the distribution and their success, instead of relying on a slack marketplace – or they have a feature and planned to control their distribution before they shot their movie. My advice to the entire sector remains the same – make things for your audience, not for some streamer; shift focus from docs to narrative works, as the marketplace has already done; embrace the creator-sphere as it matures and takes over our attention; take a look at being a curator and distributor yourself, and budget for your distribution. But even as I plan to go to MIPCOM with BrandStorytelling in a couple of weeks – a sign of blue-skies, I also get emails every week about a new round of layoffs, or another film division cutting budgets. Again, best of the worst of times. The Fall Film festivals seem to be performing well – good films, sizable audiences and some upswing in revenues. I was at Locarno before the end of Summer, and the fest atmosphere was as exuberant as I’ve seen it, with great audience turnout, and apparently more press buzz than usual. At both Locarno and TIFF (alas, I didn’t make it to Telluride or Venice), everyone seemed to be gearing up for Sundance’s last hurrah in Park City in 2026. One gets the feeling that anyone and everyone will be in attendance, but… mainly to say goodbye to what has been. Meanwhile, people seem much less sure about how things will work out in Boulder – even if everyone loves them and is rooting for their success. That said, everyone is worried about a lot of high-profile staff exists, including a search for a new executive director while on the cusp of a move. A lot of people seem to think the Berlinale is poised to take back more attention with its new (and well-liked) leadership. But I also spoke with many major festival leaders who admitted that times have never been tougher. There are government budget cuts, sponsorships are down at many places, a lot of festivals are servicing major debt-loads, and many privately concede that the only reason many are still operational is because they’ve always been leanly staffed by tireless lovers of the artform, and that because of the razor’s edge of sustainability, too few can think about how to transform for the future. And no one in the business seems to be focused on the fact that most of the audience is at home, with a podcast playing on YouTube in the background, while multitasking on something else. At best, they’re hearing about a new film they might not ever remember to watch. Breaking through to get those people’s attention is the name of the game today, and that’s not happening via film festivals, current marketing practices or in the algorithm on the major platforms. So, while the attitude of many is optimistic and hopeful that we’re turning some corner across the board and throughout the sector, I have a nagging question. Are we at the best of the worst of times, meaning we’re at the tail end of the bad times, and headed into a new best of times? Or is this the best of the bad times, and we’re just one unexpected turn from even worse times ahead? I bet your answer to that question will depend on your disposition, and mine normally leans towards optimism, but I will admit to a nagging hunch that we’re looking at the latter scenario. |
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The Popcorn List: Pop Up Series is coming to a screen near you: Throughout the month of September, three films will screen as sneak previews ‘one night only’ in 10 cities across the U.S., and 5 films will screen in the Virtual Pop Up Series, available to audiences across the country from September 25-30. Get your tickets for Fresh, Hot Films here and use the code: HOTFRESH for a discounted virtual Popcorn Pass. Tickets are limited - don’t miss out! The Popcorn List is an annual survey of acclaimed feature films recommended by film festival programmers across North America - that are not yet available in wide release. Since 2024, The Popcorn List has helped bring visibility to 45 feature films and the Pop Up Series is a bold, new filmmaker-first release model for independent films. (GSH) |
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| Theaters Boomed Early Summer, But Sink To A Real Low: Despite analyst expectations that the summer of 2025 could have been a return to box office glory, movie theaters had their lowest-grossing summer in 3 years. An anonymous studio exec told the Hollywood Reporter they are “very, very nervous for the future [and] don’t think there is enough of an audience” for movies opening in theaters. And as for the rest of 2025, senior media analyst Paul Dergarabedian says theaters will “have to rely on the cumulative success of some expected mid-range performers.” More details at Connor Murray’s piece for Forbes. Additional reading at the New York Times’ “How Hollywood Missed The Mark On Summer Movies This Year.” (GSH) A History Of Movies Made More By Data Than Directors: Check out this important piece Phil Hoad writes for The Guardian. His central question: “To what extent are algorithms and data… driving film production — and if they aren’t, where are all the so-called algorithm movies coming from?” By “algorithm movies,” he’s referencing all of Netflix’s tired, ‘samey,’ “original content” that’s being produced at a rate that eclipses even the Hollywood studios in their Golden Age peak. Hoad delves into Netflix’s history and philosophies surrounding data culture and outlines the ways in which the creative process, once prioritized, was replaced by an obsession with data that drives decisions. Hoad also interrogates the notion that maybe “[i]t isn’t so much that movies are being made by algorithm as that, by continually surfacing the mass-market or safe choice, the algorithm itself has a flattening, coarsening effect on our overall tastes.” The article gives us a lot to chew on, but one big takeaway is that Netflix’s unprecedented influence over cinema, merged with the next generation of AI, is sure to supercharge a new era of movies made more by data than by directors. (H/T to Aidan McLaughlin at Indeed for sending this article our way). (GSH) Creators Take On Climate and Mental Health At Climate Week and UN: The Impact Lounge, a traveling hub that brings together filmmakers, creators, and changemakers to spotlight powerful stories that drive action is taking the global stage during Climate Week and the UN General Assembly in NYC. Register here for their Climate week event Monday, Sep 22 4-7:30pm at Rockefeller Center and here for their Delegates Dining Room at the United Nations HQ Tuesday, Sep 23, 9am-2pm. Spots are very limited. (GSH) I’ll be in attendance, and hope to see some of you there (BN).
Check out the Climate Film Fest: Need more sustainability in September? Check out the Second Climate Film Fest, coinciding with Climate Week. They’ve got a great line-up of films, and I’m also speaking on a panel called “Beyond the Box Office: Alternative Paths to Audience and Impact” with some TBD panelists. They’ve also got a great looking Narrative Change Summit, and I’m looking forward to this event. (BN)
New Film Freeway GM’s Notes On Improving Film Fest Submission UX: For filmmakers, producers, fest organizers, and anyone a part of the film-fest submitting ecosystem, this read is for you! FilmFreeway (FF) General Manager Matt Toigo talks about film fest scams, fees, marketing, how the site has adapted post-pandemic, and the future of the submission platform. Key points: (1) Though he’s only been GM 9 months, Toigo thinks FF can “do a better job getting a niche film to a niche festival and pairing them together…. The biggest thing we’re working on is festival marketing.”; (2) “We’re [also] thinking about other ways to help filmmakers market their projects beyond just festivals.” (3) “The biggest change [in FF history] was that if you’re a first season festival, you will not receive a payout until after your event… [which] was necessary to give filmmakers and festivals more trust in the platform.” You can watch the full interview with Matt Toigo here. (H/T to “Short Of The Week” Newsletter for sharing the news). (GSH)
Does Weaker Copyright Better Serve Creators? Mike Masnick, in his article for Techdirt writes, “While everyone obsessed over whether AI training infringes copyright, the more fascinating question was always what happens when AI-generated works can’t get copyright protection at all.” And that’s exactly what we saw when Disney created a digital version of Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson (with his consent) for the new Moana film… and then, after 18 months of deal-making, “Disney’s lawyers killed the whole thing — not because of privacy concerns or actor rights, but because they worried parts of the film might end up in the public domain.” Takeaway: “As predicted, that one simple trick (AI-generated works being in the public domain) actually acts as a tool against Hollywood relying on AI tools.” In other words, “Disney’s… obsession with controlling every frame of content now prevents them from using the very technology they hoped would let them replace human performers (Masnick).” (GSH) |
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| Branded EntertainmentThe Lines Between Hollywood & Brands Continue To Blur: The concept of marketers getting involved in the creative process is growing, as evidenced by the growing number of brands collaborating with filmmakers, launching in-house production studios for feature film and TV, and box office successes like Barbie and F1 (the movie received roughly $40 million in funding from real-life brands). Our own Brian Newman tells TheWrap, “Thirteen years ago, when I started doing this, Hollywood and the traditional independent film industry, even internationally, was more resistant to the idea of brand-funded films…. Whereas today, because the funding sources have been drying up, both in terms of equity investment and funding from streamers and distributors … they have less funding. People are turning to brands more openly.” To keep up with the latest branded films/projects, check out the article for TheWrap (the article also highlights the work of REI’s content-arm, REI Co-Op Studios, which Sub-Genre helped formulate and launch (GSH) Note: A free version of this article is here.
Financial Startup Battles Consumer Fatigue With Brand(less) Series: The scripted series “Roomies” went viral this summer for its short vignettes about a young woman from Ohio who finds herself living with two strangers as she tries to make her way in New York City. Written, produced and directed by Bilt, a financial startup, “Roomies” is a perfect example of branded entertainment that doesn’t feel branded at all, because there’s no mention of the brand anywhere in all 9 episodes of the series. Bilt’s decision to start a new social media account for the show also “plays to social-media algorithms that have evolved to feed users several posts from the same accounts without annoying them with more overtly promotional posts,” according to Rachel Karten, a social media consultant. The series won’t be brand-free forever, as Bilt plans to eventually integrate some of its corporate partners into the characters’ lives, according to its CMO, but for now, all Bilt is looking for is high watchtime and engagement rates. Patrick Coffee for the Wall Street Journal has the news. (GSH) |
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| BrandStorytelling at MIPCOM: I’m headed to Cannes for MIPCOM this October for BrandStorytelling at MIPCOM - a new event, with many exciting speakers. There’s also a Creator track, and the usual business of buying/selling all types of “content.” Check out the Brand track here. |
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| Misc.Because Substack Isn’t A Silo, Creators/Writers Grow Community Faster: Substack is gaining in popularity, and with it so does long-form content. Digiday’s Ivy Liu notes that “Substack’s ongoing efforts to win over creators by becoming more of a community platform and less of a newsletter delivery service are successfully winning over some newsletter writers who value being part of a vibrant creative community.” One writer flagged Substack’s referral system (which many similar platforms don’t have) as a particularly strong source of subscriber growth. Another notes that their implementation of an algorithmic live feed that allows his content to be served to non-subscribers, another significant source of organic growth for his page. CEO Tyler Denk of Beehiiv (a Substack competitor) stated, “I think Substack is primarily looking to build a social network to compete with X, Threads and Bluesky, so there’s that algorithmic feed and the community video aspect to it.” My takeaway: Two things are happening (1) Substack creators’ reach will grow substantially thanks to new tools aimed at community-building and (2) unfolding before us in the blog space might be another case of platform homogenization, where after a matter of time, the Substacks, Patrions, Blueskys, Beehiivs…etc all start to look and feel the same. Read on at Liu’s article. (GSH) |
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| If You See Something Trailer and TheatricalOn Sept 4th, we dropped the trailer for If You See Something - Oday Rasheed’s new film which Joint Venture (a new distributor) will launch in theaters in NYC on Oct 31st, expanding Nov 14th to more venues. I was one of the producers on this film, and it’s been an amazing project to be involved with for its journey - and now we bring it to a wider audience. Here’s a quick synopsis: Ali, an Iraqi doctor seeking asylum falls for Katie, an emerging New York gallerist, and they begin a new romance together. When disturbing news from Baghdad comes back to haunt Ali in the midst of his asylum process, Ali becomes increasingly torn between the new life he’s starting with Katie and the life he left behind.
Find out more info on the film at the website, and Instagram and more news will be here soon. (BN)
Note: (GSH) denotes articles written by Sub-Genre’s Gabriel Schillinger-Hyman, not Brian (BN) |
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